College@Elm: Powering Entrepreneurs in Butler County, OH

Goal of new business accelerator and incubator is to spur economic prosperity in the region.

By Val Hunt Beerbower on June 21, 2023

Miami University of Ohio

In 2023, Miami University of Ohio will open the doors to the Fisher Innovation College@Elm, a unique public-private investment focused on developing the talent and entrepreneurs necessary to advance the Oxford, Butler County and the region’s workforce.

“We seek to serve as a national model for how a rural community can leverage its creative and technological assets to promote local economic prosperity and contribute to a vibrant world-class entrepreneurial ecosystem,” says Randi Malcolm Thomas, vice president of Miami’s ASPIRE (Advancing Strategy, Partnerships, Institutional Relations, & Economy) program.

The College@Elm includes an entrepreneurial training center in partnership with Miami University and the Butler County Small Business Development Center. Tenants will include the Fischer Group, Coarse Culture, 1809 Capital, the City of Oxford and Miami University.

“The incubator leverages Miami’s entrepreneurship, business and engineering expertise to build Butler County as an epicenter of inclusive innovation,” Malcolm says.

Miami University of Ohio

“College@Elm will be the lighthouse, the beacon for community members, regardless of their educational attainment, who have an idea and would like to get assistance on how to develop that idea further and make it a viable business entity.”

The project involves many partners, including:

• The Fischer Group, an affiliation of companies that offer manufacturing and product development solutions.
• 1809 Capital, an investment platform that leverages the college’s alumni network.
• The Ohio Small Business Development Center.
• Seed fund company CincyTech, which is supported by Ohio Third Frontier and more than two dozen foundations, corporations, municipalities and individuals.
• The Wright Brothers Institute, a cutting-edge center for innovation and technology commercialization that provides breakthrough solutions to the U.S. Air Force’s most complex initiatives.
• TechLink, which markets new inventions from the Department of Defense and Department of Veterans Affairs.
• Cintrifuse, a Cincinnati-based regional innovation network.
• The Cincinnati Minority Business Accelerator.